Jesus said that we should “love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves” (Matthew 22:39) and the apostle Paul wrote this to the church in Rome: “Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.” – Romans 15:2.
The Faith Comes By Hearing website writes these insightful words for us to ponder about reaching neighbors for Christ. In the nation of Guatemala, many people are finding creative ways to encourage their neighbors by sharing God’s Word through the Audio Bible. Maria started listening to the Proclaimer when she worked outside on her patio. The Proclaimer is a digital player dedicated to playing God’s Word in the local language. An installed microchip contains Scriptures in the language and the chip will not erase or wear out from frequent playing.
The battery will play for 15 hours and can be recharged enough times to play the entire New Testament more than 1,000 times. The Proclaimer even has a built-in generator and solar panel to charge the battery. The solar panel, in addition to charging the battery, will run the Proclaimer even without battery power as long as there is sunlight. The sound is digital quality and loud enough to be heard clearly by groups as large as 300.
Well, Maria didn’t know it at the time, but her neighbors were listening to her Proclaimer, too. A few days later, they came over and asked if Maria needed help with her work. They explained they wanted to hear God’s Word, and were willing to help so they could listen together. Maria welcomed them and soon began taking the Audio Bible to the neighbor’s house once a week. Now, five families from the neighborhood gather to hear and discuss the Gospel weekly.
Juan’s neighbors were amazed by the Proclaimer. They told him it was not something they would have ever thought of, but they were thankful that God gave the intelligence to man to build it. Juan says, “The best thing is that I can listen to God’s Word in my language, Quiché. I listen while I work, and at the end of the day, my neighbors come over so we can listen together and then talk about what we’ve learned. One of the ladies in our group is over 80 years old and never misses a meeting. She says it is the pure Word of God in Quiché and she can’t help but listen to it.” Remember this promise by God about His word from Isaiah:
“For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud,That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11).
If you’re interested in how you can participate in the Audio Bible and the Proclaimer, just go to Faith Comes By Hearing. Until next time, my friends, let’s begin thinking about how we can reach our neighbors for Christ this year? How about if we become human proclaimers?
Pastor Don
*Faith Comes by Hearing, Partner Report, January 3, 2014
